Ben Shelley: Revisiting the Erik Karlsson trade three years later

THIS TRADE BROKE THE SHARKS OF THEIR WINNING WAYS!

That trade baffled me at the time. They already had Burns an offensive defenseman with significant defensive liabilities. One made the other redundant.

As a result of obtaining this overpaid, underperforming defenseman, the Sharks had to let Joe Pavelski get away because of cap issues. Thus, they lost the heart and soul of the team. Pavelski was the Draymond Green of the Sharks. Now they are leaderless and stuck in "cap hell." And Ottawa is smiling and heaving a sigh of relief.

As a Sens fan it sucked to lose Karlsson, but when he signed that huge contract with San Jose, I was glad Karlsson didn't sign long term with Ottawa. Signing a player with a bad injury history is risky. At the same time, the picks Ottawa got could have turned out to be poop (look at Boston in 2015!). Draft picks are basically lottery tickets. But I guess that's the gamble Ottawa took and this time it worked out for them.

That trade baffled me at the time. They already had Burns an offensive defenseman with significant defensive liabilities. One made the other redundant.
- Minnyhock

The trade itself wasn't so much the issue, as that team did very well the year they traded for Karlsson.

The extension is what really did them in.

The trade itself wasn't so much the issue, as that team did very well the year they traded for Karlsson.

The extension is what really did them in.
- david22

I agree that was the bigger issue. Additionally, talk at the time was that Burns would be moved back to forward but that never happened.

THIS TRADE BROKE THE SHARKS OF THEIR WINNING WAYS!
- HenryHockey

I second this, they should have spent the cash on some forwards

As a Sens fan, I was devastated by the Karlsson trade. Now looking back it may go down as more of a win than Yashin for NYI 1st (Spezza) and Chara.

I still love EK and wish him success in SJ, if for some reason Ottawa can bring him back if SJ retains $4.5M on that cap hit, I'd trade some assets for him. Nothing crazy mind you but I'd take him back in the right situation.

Erik Karlsson was on the downside of his career when traded, and unfortunately, he hasn't gotten anywhere close to his glory days since (2017 playoff run and before). His last season in Ottawa was particularly bad as he couldn't carry the team defensively, and was responsible for alot of bad goals. His injuries had affected his skating and ability to evade the opposition. Soft like a marshmellow.

Dorion I think made a quantity over quality trade: his pro scouting has always come into question, but Melo and Tierney are solid depth players, and two core pieces have emerged (Timmy and Norris). Thought Doug Wilson was a mastermind in not having to give up a Labanc/Meier/Hertl. As mentioned by previous posts, Karlsson was damaged goods and not even close to the contract given. It will take some real creativity to get them out of this cap mess.

As a Sens fan, I was devastated by the Karlsson trade. Now looking back it may go down as more of a win than Yashin for NYI 1st (Spezza) and Chara.

I still love EK and wish him success in SJ, if for some reason Ottawa can bring him back if SJ retains $4.5M on that cap hit, I'd trade some assets for him. Nothing crazy mind you but I'd take him back in the right situation.
- riceroni

Absolutely not. Maybe another 1st round pick would help to take him on, but he is a sinking asset

3 things happened that ruined this trade

(3) Josh Norris has emerged as top 2C
(2) Karlsson’s play, especially in his zone, is a shade of his former Norris self
(1) Sharks fell in the standings and gave the Sens a 3rd overall pick in a VERY deep draft

Karlsson has been washed for a couple of years now. He wasn't same after that ankle injury. I knew that contract was going to be an albatross the moment it was announced. Ottawa dodged a bullet on re-upping him.

Sucks, because he was a dynamic player and terrific to watch in his prime, but those days are behind him now. At his current production, he isn't worth half of that cap-hit.

https://static.wikia.noco.../latest?cb=20210224203733

As a Season Ticket holder since Day 1, I have some thoughts here to put things in perspective.

If you go back to Doug's original plan, it was to sign Tavares at $13million. Had that happened, they still would have had to jettison players for Cap Space both that season and next. The idea was to have a younger #1C to be able to take the spot that Jumbo had previously occupied along with Pavs. Pavs was never going to be re-signed because Cap Space would not have allowed it then or later. They were still going to lose Donskoii, Braun and probably Dillon. They would not have had the space to trade for Karlsson and probably not Nyquist. They still would have had Norris and Tierney and DeMelo has been replaced by Ferraro , Simek, and Khnyzhov..

When Plan A didn't work out, Doug went for Plan B Karlsson. This is a "Me Too" League and one only had to look at the success of the Predators to see how a team rich with D men could compete for a Cup. Hence you had EK65, Burns and Classic. For that one season, where they went for it all, the trade worked for the most part. EK65 was oft injured but when he played, his elite skill was still evident. The Blues didn't have players suspended for head shots as others were and they took their toll on the Sharks in the Conference Finals with 6 players out, including Hertl and Pavs.

The following year, there were issues, inside and outside of the locker room. Starting with Burns, who the San Jose Mercury News described as being "hypersensitive "..His success as D Man was mainly because Pavs was so adept at tipping pucks in..with Pavs gone, that went away and Burns hasn't been able to adapt. He still gets a lot of shots blocked that he shouldn't take to begin with. His muscle memory is still that of a forward which is why it takes an extra second for him to recognize where he should be on D and by that time the puck is in the back of the net. He won't move back to forward and let EK65 have the #1D spot so ..here we are.

LeBanc in 2018 could be divided into 1st half Lebanc and 2nd half LeBanc. He sucked in the first half and after being challenged by the coaching staff to show that he belonged in the NHL, he improved significantly for the 2nd half. He played far better on D and he didn't;t take nearly as many lazy penalties. The following 2 seasons he has played mostly like 1st Half LeBanc. With the 2nd line of Pavs, Donskoii and Nyquist gone to Free Agency, this team can't afford to have 1st half LeBanc's play in order to be successful.

Timo Meier has regressed from his 30 goal season, and without enough forward depth, this makes for a season of disappointments. With Tierney, a very capable #3C and Goodrow a very capable #4C gone, their replacements have not stepped up and the team has suffered for it. Jones has been a Jekyll/Hyde goalie, which isn't entirely his fault. He faces a ton of very high danger chances due to lapses by the Team D. He also has some deficiencies ..but he did steal Game 6 against Vegas that led to the best game you'll ever see, save for the Miracle On Ice, Game 7 against Vegas.

Lastly, Doug, like every other GM in the League, was counting on a rising Cap when he made the EK65 deal and figured with the expansion money and new TV deals coming, that would give him breathing room to manuver ...that hasn't worked out for many GMs given what we have all experienced...

So, how would a team with Tavares, Couture, Hertl, and Norris as centers with Kane, Meier, LeBanc, Sorenson, Melker Karlsson, Goodrow, Tierney and Jumbo as wings, Vlasic, Burns, Ferraro, Simek, Heed, Middleton on D and Jones in net have fared? Probably better than what happened but there still would have been issues.

Ben Shelley: Revisiting the Erik Karlsson trade three years later
- Ben.Shelley.

The worst contract of the decade probably

The worst contract of the decade probably
- kastr99

Pretty close, but I think Bob's is worse.

Almost as bad as Jeff Skinner contract. How is this gm still employed with the team lol

As a Sens fan it sucked to lose Karlsson, but when he signed that huge contract with San Jose, I was glad Karlsson didn't sign long term with Ottawa. Signing a player with a bad injury history is risky. At the same time, the picks Ottawa got could have turned out to be poop (look at Boston in 2015!). Draft picks are basically lottery tickets. But I guess that's the gamble Ottawa took and this time it worked out for them.
- PogBoi

Your sens made out quite well considering Stone, Hoffman, Karlsson, Duchene, Dzingle all parted ways. Karlsson was hands down the best return, and your team has rebounded with a very talented core with an even better attitude in the locker room. Slam dunk.

As for the Sharks... You guys should not dwell on this depressing topic anymore. Thankfully LTIR retirement is all the rage, and given EK is the youngest of your big 3 contracts on D, totaling 26.5M, it is an option worth exploring. The first of those 3 contracts doesn't expire for another 4 seasons. Something has to give. People deserve to lose their jobs for this kind of management, and neutral hockey fans sure don't want to kick you guys while you are down. LTIR retirement before the NHL closes that loophole is your best bet. If Tampa can use it to their advantage, why shouldn't you guys!

This deal would have been worth it if the sharks had gotten to the finals. Can't blame management. They went for it and Karlsson would have been a big part of any cup final or win if they'd managed to stay healthy enough to beat Vegas.

Almost as bad as Jeff Skinner contract. How is this gm still employed with the team lol
- Thunder_daddy

Wilson has pictures of the owner as blackmail

Almost as bad as Jeff Skinner contract. How is this gm still employed with the team lol
- Thunder_daddy

The Sharks owner is hands off and he’s still buying what Wilson is selling.

And wasn't the 3rd overall pick the one that was conditional on re-signing Karlsson? I honestly would have had no problem with the trade if they just did it as a 1 year rental and let him walk after that and kept that pick and re-signed Pavs instead.